A Diagnostics & Imaging Week

Banyan Biomarkers (Alachua, Florida) reported that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted U.S. Patent No. 7,396,654 B2 "Neural Proteins as Biomarkers for Traumatic Brain Injury," licensed exclusively by Banyan from the University of Florida (Gainesville).

Specifically, the patent covers the detection of certain neuronal protein markers found in the blood of patients suffering from neural injury and/or neuronal damage. The patent also covers certain sensitive and rapid methods and test kits that can be used as tools for the diagnosis of neural injuries and/or neuronal disorders such as brain injury, neural damage due to drug or alcohol addiction and diseases associated with the brain and central nervous system.

Banyan also holds the exclusive license from the University of Florida for U.S. Patent No. 7,291,710 "Detection of spectrin and spectrin proteolytic cleavage products in assessing nerve cell damage."

Banyan develops in vitro diagnostic products to address unmet clinical needs for the detection of traumatic brain injury.

In other patent news:

eGenomics (New York) a company that develops genomic and informational systems for infectious disease control, reported that the (USPTO) recently issued U.S. Patent no. 7,449,808, for key elements of its proprietary warning system for hospital infection control. The system "fingerprints" infection-causing bacteria using automated DNA sequencing, stores the resulting DNA sequences in a central database and analyzes the results using proprietary algorithms. The platform allows hospital infection control teams to monitor in "real time" the spread of specific harmful pathogens.

The eGenomics 'mapping' system differentiates clusters of related strains in order to identify a source or transmission vector. Importantly, the system can identify when strains are not related, effectively telling a hospital when they are and when they are not experiencing internal transmission problems.

The eGenomics system also complements the use of rapid MRSA tests that are being developed by other companies in the industry. "Incorporating the eGenomics system into existing and next generation rapid MRSA tests," adds Kreiswirth, "would provide hospitals with a system that guides containment and eradication efforts from first admission to final release. Such a combined system would add substantial capability to hospital infection control."

The eGenomics platform incorporates an ever growing proprietary library of over 6000 analyzed S. aureus strains, as well as other infectious organisms.

The patent, titled "System and Method for Tracking and Controlling Infections," was written by Barry Kreiswirth and Steven Naidich, both of eGenomics.